As part of its summer programming announcement, FOX announced yesterday that The Simple Life 2, the sequel to this past winter's The Simple Life hit reality series, will premiere Wednesday, June 16.

One of six new series that the network will be launching as part of its "television revolution" to a year-round programming model, the half-hour The Simple Life 2 will premiere Wednesday, June 16 in a special 8PM ET/PT time period before airing a second episode later that same evening in its regularly scheduled 9PM ET/PT timeslot.

The first full implementation of the network's move to a year-around programming strategy that's been in planning for nearly two years, FOX will be launching six new series in June, including scripted dramas The Jury and North Shore; scripted comedies Method & Red and Quintuplets; and unscripted series The Casino and The Simple Life 2. "FOX has, once again, started a television revolution. This time we are creating a real year-round schedule," FOX Entertainment President Gail Berman said in making the announcement. "This is no longer a bold experiment; FOX is redefining the television season. Beginning in June, within days of this season ending, we will introduce a schedule designed to keep our offerings fresh and compelling, and our viewers engaged, continually throughout the year."

In the The Simple Life 2, Paris Hilton and Nicole Richie will pack up their Louis Vuitton bags for the ultimate cross-country road trip, traveling from Miami Beach to Beverly Hills in a hot pink pickup pulling an Airstream trailer, and accompanied only by a road map and their trendy dogs Tinkerbell and Honey Child. Travelling cross-country with no cell phones, no cash, and no credit cards, the question still remains: Can they survive The Simple Life -- and can America survive them?

As part of the summer strategy, the scheduling approach also includes regularly scheduled encore episodes of new series to maximize viewing opportunities. However, given that Simple Life, one of last winter's biggest hits, certainly isn't a new series, unlike the other five new series debuting as part of FOX's summer launch, The Simple Life 2 will not have regularly scheduled encore broadcasts.

FOX's move to a year-round programming model is partially driven by a desire to not only avoid the traditional new show bludgeoning that results from network television's massive simultaneous fall programming launch, but also by the realization that by broadcasting Major League Baseball's playoff season in October and having Idol as a foundation of its spring schedule, a traditional Fall launch strategy no longer makes sense for the network. Reacting to the increasingly highly competitive broadcasting market, FOX will instead follow its June debuts with the launching of additional series in July, September and January.

"Our successful transition to year-round programming is a testimony to the extraordinary talent of the FOX team," Berman said, saluting the network's determination and skill. "Every part of the network has been involved – from development to marketing to business affairs to sales and affiliate relations," she said. "Together we have created an entirely new programming model as FOX begins to change the face of network television."